The Alchemist’s Prayer by
Ram Dass

Ram Dass is accompanied by the skillful tablas of Manish Vyas and the soaring vocals of Nirinjan Kaur, “The Alchemist’s Prayer” is a glorious musical adventure!

Ram Dass` debut album, is an incredible presentation of the sound that has blossomed from Ram Dass` intense passion for music and the creative spirit. With influences ranging from The Beatles to Nusrate Fateh Ali Khan, Ram Dass` music has an amazing range and depth that will pull you in from the first note. He journeys from soulful to playful, and the musicianship that accompanies each track is stellar.

As a special project, Spirit Voyage ran a remix competition for Ram Dass` first track Namo Namo, and remixers from all over the world participated. The winner, Glenn Main, is from Norway and did a fantastic job with his remix. All proceeds from the sale of this track go to Yoga for Youth!!

“The Alchemist’s Prayer is an album about humanity and transformation. I wanted to communicate very honestly about the many facets of being human— feeling joy, devotion, and love, as well as facing our fears, sadness, and death.

Alchemy is the word that describes the spiritual process… We combine all of our experiences on earth and through them we raise our consciousnesses to create something greater, magnificent, and divine. So the album is a prayer, a hope, a calling out for guidance for the process of connecting with ourselves as well as the infinite.

Some of the tracks have been traveling with me for a very long time— before I ever dreamt that I would tour with Snatam or Manish; before I ever had an inkling of making music my career. I first recorded a version of Namo Namo (Sat Nam) in New Mexico in 2002 with Nirinjan and two other close friends. It was a fun idea that sounded pretty good, but was mostly a bunch of high schoolers trying out recording equipment for the first time. Little did I know that it would come with me so far, to become the first track on the album, still with Nirinjan’s incredible voice, and having such a profound depth and sense of amazement about it.

It was also a huge blessing to have my dear friend, Manish Vyas, play tabla and sing on the album. In the track “Monsoon”, Manish’s tabla feels like the water and his voice is like the wind. His devotion and virtuosity have a profound effect on the album, raising the energy, and creating a beautiful flow for the rest of the instruments and voices to glide on top of.

And the lullaby… It came to me like a dream! I was sitting alone in my studio with my guitar. I knew that I needed a lullaby on the album, and then there it was. It really shows a lot of my influences — Bach, Beethoven, the Beach Boys and Beatles, Singh Kaur… some of the sacred music that my parents raised me on! And I’m truly grateful for Hans Christian’s cello on this piece and the rest of the album. Once my vocal tracks had been put down, I heard a cello in the silence that remained. It took very little explaining to let him know what I wanted. I just told him to play what comes naturally… What a perfect fit.

So, this album is an outpouring from my heart; a prayer for myself, those around me, and for the whole world…”